1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a connector terminal for electrically connecting objects such as printed circuit boards to each other, and further to an electric connector including the connector terminal.
2. Description of the Related Art
There is known an electric connector including a plurality of needle-shaped connector terminals each having contact at opposite ends thereof, a male housing in which the connector terminals are arranged in a line and which is mounted on a first printed circuit board, and a female housing into which the male housing is fit and which is mounted on a second printed circuit board. The connector terminal at the contact formed at one end thereof passes a through-hole formed through the female housing, and is inserted into a through-hole formed through the second printed circuit board, thereby the first and second printed circuit boards are electrically connected to each other.
In an electric connector for electrically connecting two printed circuit boards to each other through connector terminals, it is important that two printed circuit boards keep a designed positional relation. For instance, if a positional relation between two printed circuit boards were deflected from an intended relation, even if a connector terminal could be inserted through a contact thereof into a first printed circuit board, the connector terminal might not be inserted into a second printed circuit board. In particular, when there are employed a plurality of electric connectors, a connector terminal may not be inserted into a second printed circuit board with high possibility.
FIG. 30 is a perspective view of the electric connector suggested in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. H9 (1997)-260004.
The illustrated electric connector includes a housing 61 in which a plurality of terminals 60 are arranged, a first guide 62 for guiding the housing 61 to move in an X-axis direction, and a second guide 63 for guiding the first guide 62 to move in a Y-axis direction. As illustrated in FIG. 30, the terminals 60 downwardly extend through a lower surface of the second guide 63.
FIG. 31 is an enlarged view of the terminal 60.
As illustrated in FIG. 31, the terminal 60 is designed to include a wavy portion 60a in a length-wise direction thereof. The wavy portion 60a provides sufficient flexibility to the terminal 60. The wavy portion 60a is bended to thereby absorb the deflection in a positional relation between the housing 61 and the second guide 63, that is, between opposite ends of the terminal 60.
FIG. 32 is a cross-sectional view of the male connector suggested in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2006-12708.
The illustrated male connector 70 is fit into a female connector (not illustrated), and includes a housing 70a formed therein with a space 72, and male terminals 13 projecting into the space 72.
The male terminal 73 is designed to have a portion 73b thinner than the rest of the male terminal 73. Adjacent to the space 72, there is formed a second space 75. The second space 75 has a size sufficient for the portion 73b to be bent. Thus, the portion 73b is bent to thereby absorb deflection in a positional relation between upper and lower printed circuit boards, and/or bending of the male connector 73 caused when the male connector 70 is inserted into the female connector.
In the conventional electric connector illustrated in FIG. 30, the wavy portion 60a and a male contact formed at a lower end of the terminal 60 are formed integral in a strip-shaped plate. Since the wavy portion 60a is curved in a width-wise direction of the strip-shaped plate, the wavy portion 60a has a width and a thickness both equal to those of the male contact. Thus, it is considered necessary to exert a tension force on the wavy portion 60a in order for the wavy portion 60a to be deformed to absorb the positional gap between the housing 61 and the second guide 63.
Accordingly, even if the terminal 60 through which two printed circuit boards are electrically connected to each other were designed to include the wavy portion 60a, and were inserted through opposite ends thereof into the two printed circuit boards, the wavy portion 60a would be very difficult to be bent, if a positional gap between the housing 61 and the second guide 63 is big, in which case, the terminal 60 would be damaged if the contact formed at a lower end of the terminal 60 is forced to be inserted into a printed circuit board.
In the conventional male connector illustrated in FIG. 32, the portion 73b is designed to have a diameter smaller than the same of a contact formed at a top end of the male terminal 73. However, if the portion 73b is hammered to thereby have a smaller diameter, a metal density and hence a hardness of the portion 73b increases by being hammered, resulting in that the portion 73b is difficult to be bent.